INSIDE A GAMING PC

Exploring the insides of a gaming pc

Every PC has a common set of core components, whether it's a desktop or laptop. These enable you to carry out routine tasks like browsing the net. But if you want to make the leap to a more cutting-edge gaming experience, you'll need something else. Top of the list is a dedicated graphics card, which delivers a much smoother performance at higher resolution.

A top of the range graphics card will typically (but not always) have a faster clock speed, measured in MHz. As a general rule, the higher the clock speed, the faster a GPU can translate information. FLOPS (Floating Point Operations per Second) is the ultimate measure of performance. The more FLOPS a card can deliver the faster it is. Ultimately, less delays makes for a better framerate.

Start with VRAM (video memory). This refers to the GPU's storage capacity, which is important because the card needs somewhere to hold pixel data until your machine is ready to display the image. If none is available, there could be a traffic jam, which results in a jittery, jumpy picture.

This is another good indication of graphics performance power. It's measured in frames per second (FPS) and determines how many complete images a graphics card can display in one second. A higher frame rate can be achieved by manually adjusting your PC's settings (the resolution, for instance). But it's better to aim for a good combination of dedicated a GPU, RAM and clock speed.

How your computer processes images

Here is a simplified diagram of how your computer processes complex images and data simultaneously to deliver the kind of experience you get when gaming.

It loads things much faster and more effortlessly than the hard drive you may be used to.

Hard Drive Disk (HDD)

The standard hard drive before the SSD came along.

They are more abundant, affordable and offer higher storage capacity relative to cost.

The best of both worlds

Naturally, you want faster load times but the higher the spec of the games you play, the more storage space you'll need. So choose a PC with both. Keep your Windows 10 operating system on your SSD, so it boots up quickly, and your games on the HDD. This will reduce the stress on your PC and improve overall performance.